


Fruit Bread Is Better Than Scurvy

by thnksforthecenturies



Category: My Chemical Romance
Genre: Bakery, M/M, Pirates
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-12-01
Updated: 2017-05-15
Packaged: 2018-05-04 08:09:35
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,917
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5326916
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thnksforthecenturies/pseuds/thnksforthecenturies
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Frank is a baker who falls in love with the feared pirate Captain Gerard Way. What happens when Frank is charged with treason and sentenced to death?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The First Meeting

Frank Iero loved baking. Well, would you expect any less from a baker? He loved making bread every morning, it was his favourite smell in the world, he loved all the different types of bread he could make. But his favourite thing about being a baker was the look on the face of a new customer when they tried his famous fruit bread, the look of surprise and amazement when they take a bite and experience the sweetness and the savoury all at once for the first time. 

Frank smiled as he took out his keys and opened the door to the back of the store, stepping in and making his way to the oven with new wood to burn. The fire steadily increased to the right heat for the bread which made the room heat up as well, keeping Frank safe from the icy wind off the sea outside his door. He got started with the dough for that day’s bread, beginning with the white bread before moving onto wholegrain, sourdough, sweet buns and finally the dough for the fruit bread. He always left that last so that the fruit didn’t dry out while he made everything else. 

Frank had just put the first batch of sweet buns in the oven when the back door burst open. A young man with black hair falling to his shoulders tumbled in before slamming the door behind him and locking it. He leant against the door breathing heavily while Frank just stared at him with wide eyes. The man looked up at Frank, hazel eyes sparkling in the fire from the ovens as he drew a pistol from his belt. Frank’s eyes grew impossibly wide at the gun and his hands began to shake. The man smirked at Frank.

“In a few seconds, some men are going to come through this door looking for me. When they do, you will tell them that you haven’t seen anyone come past this morning. I hope that you’re smart enough to not need me to tell you what happens if you don’t do as I say”, the stranger said calmly, waving his pistol as he spoke.

Frank swallowed and nodded his head. He wasn’t going to risk his life over some stranger. The man nodded and darted off behind some large sacks of flour leaving Frank staring after him.

“Well”, the stranger said making a shooing motion. “Go about your business.”

So Frank pulled the sweet buns out of the oven and left them on the bench to cool before he put them in the baskets. He had almost completely forgotten that he wasn’t the only one in the room when he began to work on the first batch of fruit bread. Well, he had until someone started knocking on the door aggressively. Frank made his way over to the door and swung it open to reveal four men in uniforms. Frank gulped when he realised they were uniforms of the Queen’s Navy.

“Sir”, the man at the front began. “We are searching for two pirates who have escaped custody.” Frank noticed the men behind their leader were shaking, probably at the fact that they let two criminals escape. “We would be most grateful if you allowed us into your establishment to search for these men.”

Frank blinked at him. If he let them in, the man (who he now knew was a pirate) would surely kill him. If he refused, he would most likely be arrested. He weighed the two options in his mind.

“As much as I would love to let you in, I really can’t right now”, Frank said.

“And why is that?” One of the guards asked.

“Because I am currently making foods that are dependent on humidity, heat, shape and extremely time sensitive”, he said in hopes that he may discourage the guards.

“Well then, you may go about you business while we search the premises”, another guard suggested.

“You will do no such thing!” Frank said indignantly. “You fools frolicking around my shop will disturb the natural air currents running through here. That will in turn affect the humidity around my work station, drying out my ingredients and letting other ingredients soften. You will ruin any chance that I may still have of completing my work since you INSIST on taking up my time when I could have easily told you that I have seen no men running through here since yesterday.”

The soldiers stared at him, some looking sheepish at the angry expression on Frank’s face. He hoped it looked quite menacing, it was his best ‘I-swear-to-god-I-will-murder-you-if-you-don’t-leave-right-now-face’.

“R-right. W-we’ll leave you al-lone then. Have a good day Sir”, the first one said before they all scurried off down the street.

Frank heaved a big sigh before shutting the door and leaning his forehead against it and closing his eyes. He stayed like that for several minutes before he lifted his head and rubbed his eyes. He turned around, intending to go back to his baking but was stopped by a smirking pirate leaning on the bench closest to him, gun still hanging from his fingers at his side.

“That was some sweet talking you did there”, drawled the pirate.

Frank gulped under the pirate’s gaze. He glanced back at the fruit he left on the table and physically deflated when he saw that the fruit was now dry and the dough had dried out as well. He moved towards it and swept it into a small bag before throwing it towards the rubbish.

“Yeah well I wasn’t lying about drying my ingredients out, and the other stuff I just read in a book somewhere”, he said to the pirate in a sad tone.

Frank set about making more dough for the fruit bread, making sure to keep the fruit away from the heat of the ovens this time. It wasn’t until he was kneading the dough that he realised the pirate was still staring at him. 

“Are you going to keep staring at me, kill me, or leave now?” Frank asked him.

“Hmmm”, the pirate smirked. “I was thinking of killing you, but you’re way too pretty to kill.” He slithered over to Frank before continuing, “And I can’t leave yet, those fools will still be looking for me until they find the other guy.”

“Other guy?” Frank asked as he put the fruit bread in the oven.

“A member of my crew was helping me recover a map from another crew. The crew we infiltrated was captured by the Navy so we had to escape before we all faced the gallows”, he explained.

“Wait, member of ‘my’ crew? Are you important or something?”

The pirate scoffed at Frank’s lack of knowledge. He started ranting on and on about how he was “a fierce pirate who sailed the seven seas looking for treasure” or something like that, Frank wasn’t really interested. By the time the fruit bread was done and the pirate was still talking, Frank had officially stopped listening. He had put all of the bread into baskets and moved them to the front of the bakery when the pirate finally took a breath.

“So yeah, that’s great and all”, Frank said. “But all I really wanted to know was your name.”

The pirate blushed as he introduced himself as Captain Gerard Way.

“But call me Gerard, it’s not like you’re a pirate so there’s no need for formality.”

“Well my name’s Frank Iero but I guess it’s ok for you to call me Frank”, Frank said and shook hands with the pirate.

Captain Gerard Way was one of the most feared pirates known but he talked non stop about anything and everything, so Frank found it pretty hard to be scared of him. That was until he went to leave.

“I will see you again Frank, and if you tell anyone about this then I will kill you and your whole family”, Gerard said with a sweet smile before slipping out the door and into the early morning.

“Well, it’s safe to say that pirate will be the death of me”, Frank sighed.

He didn’t know how right he was…..


	2. Gerard Needs to Stop Breaking into the Bakery

The second time they met was fairly similar to the first.

“Good evening” Gerard whispered in Frank’s ear, causing him to jump a foot in the air as he spun around.

Frank had almost completely forgotten about the pirate captain, it would be extremely difficult for him to actually forget. It wasn’t exactly a normal occurrence in Frank’s daily life. He had, again, been preparing the fruit bread when suddenly his vision was taken away by a pair of hands over his eyes. Gerard’s greeting had scared him a lot.

“C-captain Way”, Frank stammered. “What brings you back here?”

Frank was trying to figure out why the pirate was there. He hadn’t told anyone about their run-in and wasn’t planning to. The only reason for the visit that Frank could come up with was that Gerard was there to kill him to ensure that he would never talk. Great, he was going to get blood in his dough. That must be a new spin on “pouring sweat and blood into your food”.

“Actually, you’re the reason I’m here”, Gerard said causing Frank to gulp. “Last time I was here”, he began. “I noticed the amazing smells coming from these ovens here”, he said gesturing to the ovens. “And I was wondering what they were.”

Frank was confused. It must have shown on his face because Gerard smirked and stepped forward. 

“What? The little baker is scared of the big bad pirate?” Gerard cooed at Frank in a baby voice.

“Don’t call me little”, Frank snapped at him.

Gerard’s ever present smirk seemed to stretch impossibly wider.

“Awww, the baker’s got spirit”, Gerard cheered. “Not many people would’ve even dreamed of speaking to me in that tone”, he said in a low voice as he stepped even closer to Frank. “What makes you think I won’t kill you for it?”

Frank swallowed before replying, “I’m sure that if you wanted me dead then I already would be.”

Gerard seemed pleased with the response because he stepped backwards, removing himself from Frank’s space. Frank watched the pirate slink around the small work room, taking in every small detail of the area. Frank was doing the same thing, but checking out the pirate instead of the room. He watched Gerard as he picked up a sweet bun from the basket that was still hot from the oven.

“You know Frankie, this bread is pretty good”, Gerard said.

Frank stood up straight and narrowed his eyes at Gerard. It wasn’t just bread! His creations were works of art! He could make loaves that were crispy on the outside and fluffy as a cloud on the inside, sticky buns that were as sweet as any candy, and even bread that would keep for weeks or even months. He said as much to Gerard making him chuckle and shake his head.

“I’ll have to take your word for that”, Gerard said.

“Why don’t we test it?” Frank suggested.

Gerard looked at him with a confused expression.

“I bet you that my bread will last you until you return here again”, Frank proposed confidently.

Gerard stared at Frank before stepping closer and holding his hand out for a handshake.

“Fine. I bet that it won’t last until I return here in two months time. And if it doesn’t, then…… You have to do something for me”, Gerard said with a smirk.

“Deal. But if it does, then you have to do something for me.”

“Deal.”

The two of them finally settled on fruit bread because Gerard had mentioned that his crew were having trouble with scurvy. They talked for hours as Frank prepared and baked the loaves, learning a lot about the other. Frank learned that Gerard was from the same town on the coast as Frank and was only two years older. He began stealing at a young age to take care of his younger brother when their parents died and turned to piracy when he “started to feel bad about robbing the poor” and decided to rob the rich instead.

Gerard learned that Frank had been taught to bake by his mother, who was a cook for a wealthy family. He had moved to the Capital after his mother died and opened his bakery in memory of her. He also learned that most of Frank’s recipes had come from accidentally dropping things into the wrong bowls. Gerard had laughed for a few minutes after he heard that.

When the bread was done, they both loaded the loaves into a few small crates.

“How are you going to carry these?” Frank asked Gerard.

Gerard smirked at him.

“Why we’ll have to take my carriage then won’t we?”

Frank followed Gerard out the back door of the bakery and was shocked to see a horse attached to a small cart. Gerard laughed at his shocked face and finally admitted that he had ‘borrowed’ it from outside some bar at the docks.

“The owner will be so drunk, he’ll forget he even had a horse Frankie,” Gerard assured him.

Frank was, again, surprised when Gerard dragged him up onto the cart by the arm. He insisted that Frank had to come and see his ship, even if only from a distance (even though Gerard had tried to get Frank to come aboard). The bread was collected by Gerard’s brother Mikey and several others, happy that they had a potential solution for their scurvy problem, leaving Gerard and Frank to say their goodbyes beneath a lamppost.

“You could always come with me Frankie”, Gerard insisted. “We have an excellent kitchen aboard. You’d love it.”

Frank smiled softly, deciding not to question how Gerard had managed to install a kitchen “with a fully functioning oven Frank”. But no matter what, Frank couldn’t leave. He had a life in this city and he never saw moving as a worthwhile venture.

“Maybe next time”, Frank replied.

Frank was too busy admiring how the lamp light illuminated Gerard’s features to notice the pirate leaning in. Before he knew it, Gerard’s lips were pressed softly against Frank’s. He inhaled sharply at the contact but quickly relaxed into it, moving his lips against Gerard’s, tasting salt and what he thought must be rum. They both pulled away after a few minutes, Gerard smiling down at Frank before turning wordlessly and walking down the dock towards the ship. Frank turned to leave, smile on his lips, not noticing the movement in the shadows of the buildings lining the path.

Frank couldn’t wait for the two months to be over, just to see Gerard again. He went home and fell asleep to the memory of cold lips against his own.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> there are probably 2 chapters left after this i think.....


	3. Chapter 3

It had been nearly two months since Gerard had last seen Frank and those months had been prosperous for his crew. They had made several successful raids on Navy ships and private vessels owned by the rich. These months had also been good because the fruit bread had lasted well, meaning that only two of his crew had died and neither was of scurvy (they had to learn the hard way not to wake the Captain up after a long night of drinking). He stood at the helm of the ship, watching her cut through the waves with ease as they approached land. Gerard was excited to see Frank again, maybe even see him for more than a few hours before he had to set sail once again.

He used to enjoy the long periods away from land but these last few months had been particularly difficult. His heart belonged to the sea, it always had and he assumed that it always would. No man or woman had previously held his attention for long enough that he would consider actually going out of his way to see them. But Frank was different. The tiny baker made Gerard want to stay on dry land and sit in a workshop while Frank made bread. Gerard frowned at the idea of dry land but soon found himself smiling softly at the thought of his baker.

“Not my baker you idiot”, Gerard grumbled to himself. “You met him twice. That does not equal ownership of a person.”

“Who do you own now?” Someone chirped behind him, making him jump. “Cause in case you didn’t know, we don’t do slavery.”

Gerard turned around to see Mikey smirking at him. He scowled at his younger brother and turned back to the ocean in front of them, determined to ignore the teasing. Mikey wasn’t giving up though, it had been too long since he had something to tease his older brother about. 

“It’s the baker boy isn’t it? I knew you were a little too interested in him”, Mikey teased.

Gerard continued to ignore him, knowing Mikey had things to do before they lowered the anchor in a bay close by Frank’s village. The younger Way continued to make smart comments until he realised that Gerard was no longer paying attention and shrugged before walking off to make preparations.

With Mikey gone, Gerard smiled as he thought of Frank once again.

~~~~~

The last two months had not been as good to Frank as they were to Gerard. Well, the first few weeks had been normal. But recent events had cancelled out any moment of happiness during that time.

It had been a month and a half since Gerard had left Frank under the lamp post with tingling lips and starry eyes. During that time, Frank had come to the conclusion that he no longer wanted to live and work in the town, people had become wary and almost hostile towards him. Frank wasn’t sure what caused the change but he knew it would be best to just move away from it, as gossip never really disappears in small towns. He had packed all of his possessions and clothes into four boxes - he had never owned many things, which were stacked by the door in preparation of his move to another town in a week or two. He had sold the bakery to another baker, so he knew it would be looked after and was set to reopen soon, and he planned to sell his small loft above the bakery when he relocated.

Frank was walking along the street at lunch time, a time which normally saw Frank in the middle of his lunch rush, but today he strolled around in an effort to enjoy the sunshine, and see the town one final time. There was a rumbling noise behind him so he turned to locate the source of the noise. The rumbling turned out to be the hooves of horses that pulled a cart. Frank watched with wide eyes as it pulled up beside him. A glance to the side of the black carriage provided onlookers with a view of the Royal Crest as well as rusty metal bars to cover the windows. A soldier jumped down from the driver’s seat while another jumped off the back of the compartment and moved behind Frank.

“Frank Iero”, the driver began. “You are charged with conspiring with pirates and treason against the Crown. You will be escorted to a cell where you will await execution.”

Frank panicked as the man behind him grasped his wrists and secured the shackles around them. Everyone was staring at him and whispering to each other. Frank considered resisting, but that would just make him look guilty, even though he was, but surely they had no evidence. He could get out of this, you can’t kill someone based on gossip and rumours. He gulped as he was pushed towards the open door of the carriage and shoved inside harshly. Frank could hear people talking outside over the screeching of the lock sliding into place.

~~~~~

Two weeks later and Frank was being handcuffed and being led to a new cell. He had been kept in a cell in the prison while he was on trial, but was now being moved to a different one beneath the town hall. The trial had been lengthy for what should have been a simple accusation.

The first few days merely consisted of Frank sitting at a table while people yelled things at him. Apparently the judge needed to look at all of the ‘evidence’ to make sure they didn't kill an innocent man. To be fair, Frank knew he was guilty but that didn't mean he would admit it and it certainly didn't mean that he wanted to listen to people talk about him while acting like he wasn't even there. 

Mrs. Johnson, who lived next to the bakery, had talked for an hour about how she heard someone knock on the bakery door early in the morning two months ago (which turned out to be his flour delivery). Officer Urie from the Royal Navy had spoken shortly about how he had ‘searched’ the bakery while hunting a pirate and found none (Frank had to try really hard not to snicker at him). Several other people of importance had claimed they heard things at night in the bakery, which Frank knew were total lies or around the time when the oven had stopped working and he had to fix it at night time. 

The judge seemed to be in favour of Frank, until Mr McCracken had stepped forward on the final day of the trial. He was a wealthy businessman who was known by the ladies of the town for being unfaithful to his wife and barmaids knew not to serve him alcohol or he would become aggressive towards them. Despite his reputation, Mr McCracken was friends with the mayor, local doctor and several other positions of importance, including a Navy General.

“Mr McCracken”, said the Judge. “Please present your evidence in this case.”

Mr McCracken nodded and looked to the crowd in the town hall. 

“Ladies and gentlemen”, he began. “Most of us know Mr Iero here as the town baker. He provides us with bread for our tables and never sets a foot out of place.”

Frank began to relax, thinking he would say similar things to the other ‘witnesses’.

“Or so he would have you believe”, he said causing Frank to tense again. “On the morning after the pirates were spotted in our town, I saw Mr Iero talking to someone by the docks”, he trailed off as whispers began in the crowd. 

Frank gulped as he recalled what happened by the docks, he had to stop himself from tracing his fingertips along his lips. Mr McCracken smirked at Frank before turning back to the audience.

“Mr Iero was talking to a man dressed like a sailor for several minutes before I witnessed a horrible act”, he paused for dramatic effect. “The two men kissed!” He yelled to the room.

Cries of disgust rang through the crowd and Frank bowed his head in shame, there was no way they were going to show him any mercy now. He could feel hundreds of eyes boring into his skull, full of hatred and disgust. The judge slammed his gavel on the desk to silence the crowd, Frank looked up at him and almost burst into tears at the cold look on his face. 

“Frank Iero”, the Judge began. “You are found guilty of conspiring with a known pirate.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> look who finally updated!!! as much as i would love to say that updates will be regular from now on i doubt it will actually happen, though i'll try to update again before 2018 :/


End file.
